Tractor mounted material compactor

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for compacting loose material in an open container, such as a trailer, consists of a frame attached to a tractor with a boom and packer foot which can be extended over an open trailer and moved up and down to compact material, such as raw cottom, in the trailer. The boom may be operated from the hydraulic system of the tractor.

United States Patent [1 1 Vocker et al.

[ 1 Sept. 18, 1973 1 TRACTOR MOUNTED MATERIAL 3,376,799 4/1968 Perry etall 94149 COMPACTOR 3,543,945 12/1970 Nelson 212/55 x [76] Inventors:Harold R. Vocker, 109 Kentucky St.,

Monroe, La. 71201; David L. Prim E C H b ry xammer arvey orns y Marcovm,2022 Valencia Assistant Examiner-Philip R. Coe Monroe, La.; 1. L.Thompson, Rt. 4, Atmmey Revere Gufley Box 192; Woodrow Wallace, Rt. 4,Box 404, both of Holly Ridge, La.

[22] Filed: Mar. 9, 1972 [57] ABSTRACT [21] Appl. No.: 233,569

An apparatus for compacting loose material in an open [52] US. Cl.100/100 container, such as a trailer, consists of a frame attached [51]Int. Cl'. B30b 15/00 to a tractor with a boom and packer foot which canbe [58] Field of Search 100/100, 233; 94/48, extended over an opentrailer and moved up and down 94/49; 212/55 to compact material, such asraw cottom, in the trailer. The boom may be operated from the hydraulicsystem [56] References Cited of the tractor.

' UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,691,967 9/1972 Mett et a1. 100/100 4 Claims, 2Drawing Figures 62 44 32 66 H B IO 43 48 X 34 32 15 N 2 V A M I6 N :j\ AA IN ,;:r- 2 2 M 46. g 26 7o a v x N a 7 N 15 T v l3 x \1 N F g/1 d WPATENTEUSEP1 8l973 3,759,171

sum 2 or 2 TRACTOR MOUNTED MATERIAL COMPACTOR This invention resides inan apparatus for packing loose material in an open container and isespecially useful for the cotton farmer to use to pack loose raw cottonin an open trailer.

The loose raw cotton is carried to the gin in trailers and must becompacted as tightly as feasible to save space and number of trailerloads. Until this invention, the usual practice has been to employ mento tramp the cotton in the trailer. The use of this apparatus to compact the cotton saves the work of several men and packs the cotton moretightly.

The subject of this invention is an apparatus which is readily attachedto and carried on a tractor, may be used to compact loose material, suchas raw cotton in a trailer body, and is operated by a power source on aconventional tractor.

The apparatus consists of a frame which may be quickly bolted to theframe of a tractor, a boom extending from the frame and a post having atamping foot depending from the outer end of the beam, so that the boommay extend over the trailer and the foot press downwardly on thematerial in the trailer. Hydraulic cylinders operate the post to move itto different positions in the trailer and the boom to move the foot tocompact the material. The tractor may also move the apparatus along thetrailer and also from one trailer to another.

DRAWINGS FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the compacting apparatusmounted on the frame of a tractor, with the packer foot in a trailerbody.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the compacting apparatus,illustrating the details of construction.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION The apparatus of this invention is mounted on thetractor A of conventional construction and is shown with its packer footin the trailer B to compact the loose material therein. The two siderails 12 are bolted to the frame of the tractor at 13 and extendforwardly of the tractor, and are connected at their forward ends by afixed cross bar 14.

Two vertical posts 15 are fixed to the rear ends of rails 12 andconnected by a cross bar 16. The upper ends of these posts 15 haveblocks 18 fixed on their outer sides and a tube 20 extends through theposts and blocks.

At the forward ends of rails 12, two posts 22, substantially higher thanposts 15, are secured and are connected at their upper ends by a bar 24and braced to the rails 12 by braces 26 and 28.

The boom 30 is formed by two side beams 32 connected together by crossbars 34, 36. This boom is pivoted to the rear posts 15 by a rod 40extending through the rear ends of the beams 32 of boom 30 and throughthe tube 20 and ends of posts'lS. At the front end of boom 30 a rod 42between the ends of beams 32 forms an axis for the packer arm 44 pivotedthereon, which said side members. The posts 48 are fixed to the crossmember 56 and further braced by braces 58 between the posts 48 and endmembers 54 of the packer foot 46.

The packer arm 44 may be pivoted about the rod 42 by a hydrauliccylinder 60 connected to cross bar 36 of the boom 30 and having a pistonrod 62 connected at 64 to the upper end of the block 50 above the rod42. Hydraulic lines 66 convey fluid from the hydraulic system of thetractor A under control of valves on the tractor to move the packer arm44 and foot 46 about the rod 42 and move the packer foot 46 to differentpositions.

A second hydraulic cylinder 70 is connected at 72 to the cross bar 14 onthe forward end of the frame. A piston rod 74 is connected to rear crossbar 34 of boom 30 at 76. Hydraulic lines 78 connect to the hydraulicsystem of the tractor and fluid under control of control valves on thetractor actuates the piston to move boom 30 up and down to compactmaterial in trailer B.

The compacting apparatus is mounted on a tractor by bolting the siderails 12 to the frame of a tractor with the frame extending forwardly ofthe tractor. The boom 30 is raised by actuation of hydraulic cylinder 70and the tractor moves the packer foot over the trailer B. The boom 30and foot 46 are then lowered and the foot compacts material in thetrailer under force of hydraulic fluid in cylinder 70. As the boom israised and lowered to compact the material, as cotton, in the trailer,the foot may be moved back and forth by actuation of the packer armcylinder 60. The tractor may also be moved to move the boom and foot todifferent positions.

We claim:

1. An apparatus mounted on a tractor for compacting loose material in anopen container spaced from said tractor comprising a frame having sidemembers for attachment to the side frame members of a tractor, saidframe extending upwardly from said side members above the engine hood ofsaid tractor, a substantially rigid boom pivoted at its rear end to theframe above the engine hood and extending upwardly and outwardly beyondsaid tractor, a first power actuator on said frame and connected to saidboom for raising and lowering said boom, means connecting said poweractuator to a power source on said tractor to actuate said boom, asubstantially rigid arm pivoted at its upper end to the forward end ofsaid boom and extending downwardly and having a packer foot connecteddirectly to its lower end, and means connected to said arm to move saidarm and foot about its pivot, so that said boom may be raised andlowered by said power actuator to compact loose material by said packingfoot in said open container, and said packing foot may be moved oversaid material by moving said tractor or by moving said am about itspivot on said boom.

2. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the power actuatorfor raising and lowering said boom is connected to the hydraulic systemof said tractor and is operated by hydraulic fluid from said system.

3. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the apparatus mountedon the tractor may be moved by said tractor to position said packerfootto different positions, and the boom may be raised and the tractormoved to move the packer foot from and to different trailers, and saidmeans to move said arm about its pivot on the boom is connected to thepower source on the tractor.

4. An apparatus mounted on a tractor for compacting loose material in anopen vehicle body, comprising a frame member having side members forattachment to the forward ends of the side frame members of a tractor,said frame member having vertical supporting members extending upwardlyfrom said side members above the engine hood of said tractor, asubstantially rigid boom pivoted at its rear end to said verticalsupporting members above said hood and extending upwardly and outwardlybeyond said tractor, a first hydraulic cylinder and piston connected atone end to said frame and at the other end to an intermediate point onsaid boom, hydraulic lines for connection to the hydraulic system ofsaid tractor and supplying hydraulic pressure to actuate said piston andcylinder and raise and lower said boom, a substantially rigid armpivoted at its upper end on the forward end of said boom and extendingdownwardly and a packing foot connected directly to the lower end ofsaid arm, a second cylinder and piston connected to said boom and saidarm for moving said foot toward or away from said frame, and hydrauliclines connected to the hydraulic system of said tractor and to saidsecond cylinder and piston and supplying hydraulic pressure to move saidarm on said boom, said boom being raised to move said foot above avehicle body and lowered to pack loose material in said body, and saidarm moving said foot toward or away from said frame, while the tractormay move said foot along said body to pack the material at all points insaid body.

t I i t IF

1. An apparatus mounted on a tractor for compacting loose material in an open container spaced from said tractor comprising a frame having side members for attachment to the side frame members of a tractor, said frame extending upwardly from said side members above the engine hood of said tractor, a substantially rigid boom pivoted at its rear end to the frame above the engine hood and extending upwardly and outwardly beyond said tractor, a first power actuator on said frame and connected to said boom for raising and lowering said boom, means connecting said power actuator to a power source on said tractor to actuate said boom, a substantially rigid arm pivoted at its upper end to the forward end of said boom and extending downwardly and having a packer foot connected directly to its lower end, and means connected to said arm to move said arm and foot about its pivot, so that said boom may be raised and lowered by said power actuator to compact loose material by said packing foot in said open container, and said packing foot may be moved over said material by moving said tractor or by moving said arm about its pivot on said boom.
 2. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the power actuator for raising and lowering said boom is connected to the hydraulic system of said tractor and is operated by hydraulic fluid from said system.
 3. In an apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the apparatus mounted on the tractor may be moved by said tractor to position said packer foot to different positions, and the boom may be raised and the tractor moved to move the packer foot from and to different trailers, and said means to move said arm about its pivot on the boom is connected to the power source on the tractor.
 4. An apparatus mounted on a tractor for compacting loose material in an open vehicle body, comprising a frame member having side members for attachment to the forward ends of the side frame members of a tractor, said frame member having vertical supporting members extending upwardly from said side members above the engine hood of said tractor, a substantially rigid boom pivoted at its rear end to said vertical supporting members above said hood and extending upwardly and outwardly beyond said tractor, a first hydraulic cylinder and piston connected At one end to said frame and at the other end to an intermediate point on said boom, hydraulic lines for connection to the hydraulic system of said tractor and supplying hydraulic pressure to actuate said piston and cylinder and raise and lower said boom, a substantially rigid arm pivoted at its upper end on the forward end of said boom and extending downwardly and a packing foot connected directly to the lower end of said arm, a second cylinder and piston connected to said boom and said arm for moving said foot toward or away from said frame, and hydraulic lines connected to the hydraulic system of said tractor and to said second cylinder and piston and supplying hydraulic pressure to move said arm on said boom, said boom being raised to move said foot above a vehicle body and lowered to pack loose material in said body, and said arm moving said foot toward or away from said frame, while the tractor may move said foot along said body to pack the material at all points in said body. 